'Greatest Generation' member became lawyer, judge

Updated 8:05 pm, Thursday, August 29, 2013

Earl W. Tracy, Jr., age 90, was among those who fought in the Battle of the Bulge during World War II.

Earl W. Tracy, Jr., age 90, was among those who fought in the Battle of the Bulge during World War II.

'Greatest Generation' member became lawyer, judge

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Earl W. Tracy Jr. was marching down a street in Remagen, Germany, in 1945 when an Associated Press photographer took his picture. The image appeared in Tracy's hometown newspaper, the San Antonio Express, which ended up on his mother's breakfast table, and she recognized her son immediately.

Tracy served in France, Belgium and England in World War II, and was awarded a Bronze Star for his participation in the Ardennes counteroffensive, also known as the Battle of the Bulge.

He almost died once when his jeep hit an anti-tank mine near Stuttgart, Germany. The explosion killed the driver and another soldier, and Tracy was injured. “He was quiet for a long time” about his war experiences, his son Ty Tracy said. “I respected that.”

As his children got older, Tracy began sharing his stories. “I was so proud of him, that he had been there,” daughter Joan Tracy-Sotoodeh-Huff said. “I loved learning more and more about it; he was proud of ... doing his part.”

Earl Tracy died Aug. 23 at 90.

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In 1945 he was hired as a project engineer at Southwest Research, and after a time started attending St. Mary's University school of law. “I think he wanted more of a challenge,” Ty Tracy said. Earning a law degree, he went on to get a doctorate and open a private practice in 1959.

Soon he was appointed the prosecutor for Olmos Park, but before he could work his first case, the sitting judge died in the courtroom. “The old judge grabbed his chest and collapsed, and my father caught him before he hit the ground,” Ty Tracy said. He was appointed municipal court judge a few weeks later, a post he kept until 2002.

His children both recall an idyllic upbringing in Oak Hills. “It was fantastic,” Ty Tracy said. “My mom stayed home ... we ate dinner as a family every night.”

He remembers his father as “not strict,” but a good motivator. “He would let you make your decision, but he would give you all the info to do that,” Ty Tracy said. “He let you know why grades were important — so you could do anything you wanted to do in your life.”

His daughter recalls how supportive her father was, always available to help with homework and encouraging her to aim high. “My interests were history, science, astronomy,” Tracy-Sotoodeh-Huff said. “I wanted to be an astronaut and he sent off to get an application when I was around 16 — to NASA.”

More Information

Earl W. Tracy Jr.

Born: Jan. 2, 1923, San Antonio

Died: Aug. 23, 2013, San Antonio

Preceded by: Wife Vivian A. Tracy.

Survived by: Daughter Joan Tracy-Sotoodeh-Huff, son Ty Tracy and daughter-in-law Shari; two grandchildren and a sister.